The lineage the e-bugster electric vehicle goes all the way back to the noble aspirations of the peoples' car, and Volkswagen's very name, so it is very fitting that the E-Bugster looks likely to form the basis of a range of E-Bugster electric vehicles.
Appropriately being shown in the the only market that has embraced electric mobility on any scale, we first saw the E-Bugster as a coupe in Detroit in January, but this time the hard-top has been removed, previewing a future Beetle Cabriolet.
We'll get a first look at the car other than pictures tomorrow at the press preview in Beijing, so stay tuned.
The drive-train is the same as the previous E-Bugster with 85 kWh (115 PS), 0 to 60 mph in 10.9 seconds, and a range of at least 110 miles from the 28.3 kWh lithium-ion batteries.
A fast-charging function allows complete recharging in just 35 minutes from a specialist DC source, or slower charging from an AC source such as a 230-volt domestic outlet.
This fast-charge capability comes courtesy of the Combined Charging System we discussed back in October, which makes possible charging from single-phase AC sources (i.e. your domestic mains), provided an industry standard for plugs and sockets can be nailed down. "Ultra-fast" charging would be possible at dedicated DC charging stations.